The humidity was doing a good job of outpacing the temperature. Until around 10 AM when the thermometer pushed over 100. That’s when 176 frightened kids and a few old hippies staggered out of the crowded cattle trucks.
“Alright maggots, RUN,” voices screamed in unison from under wide brimmed Smokey Bear hats. So we ran, duffle bags slung over shoulders, for hours before finally coming to attention under the blistering Missouri sun. All the while the bears circled, sniffing the air and grunting.
“Don’t show them any fear,” one of the old hippies told me. “They prey on the weak.”